2026 NDMEA Elections
Voting Open from February 15-March 15th, 2026.
Results will be shared at our General Meeting March 26th at 1:30 PM.
Meet The President Elect Candidate
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Jesslyn Josie
President Elect Candidate
Jesslyn Josie is in her 10 th year of teaching. She currently teaches PK-5th grade music at Hazen Elementary. Previously she taught 5 years of PK-5th grade music, highschool choir, miscellaneous middle school music classes, and assisted with high school band at St. John Public School.
Jesslyn is an active member of Prairie Winds Orff (PWO) serving in various leadership positions. She also serves on the Orff Schulwerk Educational Programming subcommittee through the American Orff Schulwerk Association (AOSA). She has completed her Orff Schulwerk certification from University of Mary and Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. She has a Masters in Music Education with a Concentration in Autism through Boston Conservatory at Berklee. She is currently serving as the NDMEA West Region General Music Representative.
Jesslyn holds memberships with NAfME, AOSA, PWO, NDMEA, North Dakota United, and Hazen Educators Association. She has received scholarships for advanced training from AOSA and NDU.
Jesslyn participates in church choir and handbells in Washburn at First Lutheran. In the summer she works at the International Music Camp where she has worked many different positions and attended camp sessions as a student.
Meet The West Region
Representative Candidates
Connie Stordalen
West Choral Rep Candidate
Elise Weir
West Choral Rep Candidate
Connie Stordalen is in her 28th year of teaching Vocal Music Education in North Dakota. She currently serves as the Director of Choirs at Horizon Middle School in Bismarck, where she teaches vocal music to students in grades 6 through 8. Connie conducts the 6th through 8th grade choirs, leads a show choir, and co-directs two musicals with her husband for students in these grades at Horizon Middle School.
Connie earned her K-12 Vocal and Instrumental Music Education degree from North Dakota State University (NDSU) and began her career teaching K-5 music in the Grand Forks Public Schools system for 15 years. During this time, she also served as one of the Associate Directors for the Grand Cities Children's Choir and held multiple positions within the summer Grand Forks SPA program.
Connie has been actively engaged in the North Dakota choral community for many years. She has served as the NDMEA West Choral Representative and is currently the Past-President of NDACDA. Connie enjoys adjudicating and guest-directing choral festivals across the state, including the NDACDA's Surround the State in Song. In 2015, she was honored to serve as the director of the Middle Level/Junior High Treble Honor Choir.
Music is a shared passion in Connie's family. Her husband, Erik, serves as the Associate Director of Bands at Century High School. Their two oldest children, Konnor and Samantha, are currently studying for K-12 degrees in vocal and instrumental music education. Their youngest child, MeKayla, is also actively involved in both music and athletics.
Connie would be honored to serve again as the Vocal Representative for West NDMEA. She aims to continue supporting current choral educators and connect with future choral music educators to enhance choral music education throughout the state.
Elise Weir is in her 6th year of teaching at Hazen Public Schools, where she has taught 4th-12th grade choir, 5th-6th general music, high school music electives, 7th grade leadership, and currently assists with high school band.
Elise is an active member of NDACDA, where she serves as the co-chair of HS/Collegiate SSAA/Treble Honor choir, NAfME, North Dakota United, and Hazen Education A Association. In 2022, she was the recipient of the NDACDA Young Choral Director of the Year Award and her high school choir was a featured ensemble at the 2025 NDACDA Showcase Concert. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from the University of Jamestown and a Masters in Music degree from the University of Mary. Her choral students have received stars at both small and large group festivals, outstanding performances at regional small group, and have participated in various honor festivals hosted in the state.
In her free time, she participates in the local handbell choir, composes choral music, reads, and enjoys hiking with her husband, Kaleb, and their two dogs, Phoebe and Wallace.
Anne Chambers
West Band Rep Candidate
Anne Chambers is a native of Bismarck, North Dakota and a graduate of St. Mary’s Central HighSchool. Upon graduation, Anne attended Northern State University, Aberdeen, SD, where she received her Bachelors of Music Education and Bachelors of Science in Elementary Education degrees. Anne graduated with honors from the American Band College (ABC), Central Washington University in August 2018 where she completed her Master of Education in Music Education. Among the over 200 band directors attending ABC, Chambers was selected as a recipient of the Conn Selmer Division of Education Scholarship. She is also a recipient of the Bismarck Professional Women’s Scholarship and has been featured in the Inspired Woman
Magazine.
Anne served as the director of instrumental music in Brandon Valley, SD for three years before
returning to Bismarck in 2016. This is her 10th year at St. Mary’s Central High School where she conducts the Wind Orchestra, Symphonic Band, Jazz Ensemble, Marching Band, Pep Band, and assists with the 7 th & 8 th Bands at the St. Mary’s Academy. Along with her classroom responsibilities, Mrs. Chambers is an active performer, guest conductor and adjudicator for regional contests and honor bands and private lesson instructor. She is a member of the National Association for Music Education, North Dakota Music Educators Association, National Band Association and Phi Beta Mu.
Currently, Anne and her husband Ben serve as the directors of instrumental music for grades 7-
12 at Light of Christ Catholic Schools in Bismarck, North Dakota. They have two children, Luke
and Veronica.
Amber Thorenson
West Band Rep Candidate
Amber Thorenson currently is the 5-12 band director in the Bottineau Public School. She has
fifteen years of teaching experience. During her teaching career, she has taught students
between the ages of 4-18 and has specialized in general music, band, choir, and piano.
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She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education from Minot State University. She completed Level III Orff training at Minot State University. She was awarded the Bottineau County Teacher of the Year in 2025. Amber is an active member of NDMEA, NDBDA and NDEA and serves on the board for the Bottineau County Community Concert series. She lives on a grain farm in Newburg with her husband Kelly and they have three daughters.
Jacob Wanner
West Band Rep Candidate
Jacob Wanner is an educator, percussionist, and drummer based in Mandan, ND. He is the director of bands and choirs for New Salem-Almont public schools and has performed regularly with local groups such as the Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra. He has adjudicated various music festivals, coached rhythm sections, and performed in local chamber ensemble settings and regional music of all styles. He studied instrumental music education at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory and received his Master of Arts from the University of Mary.
Emily Westphal
West Orchestra Rep Candidate
An accomplished music educator based in North Dakota, Emily M. Westphal has excelled in teaching private lessons since 2017 and leading the orchestra program at Williston Middle School Central Campus since 2019. In the latter role, she teaches grades six through eight, focusing on differentiating lessons to meet various student needs, selecting music, working on myriad administrative tasks, and booking the school auditorium and handling contracts. Since starting at the campus, she has grown the program to about 120 students and now teaches a full course load.
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Attributing her success to hard work, determination, and the many supportive people throughout her life, Ms. Westphal grew up with a love and passion for music, playing significant roles in orchestras from elementary school to high school. Her high school music teachers noticed her natural talents and encouraged her to pursue a career in music education. Upon graduating in 2015, she studied at Concordia College in Minnesota, where she largely built the music program from the ground up., ultimately earning a bachelor’s degree in music education in 2019.
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Ms. Westphal has been a member of the American String Teachers Association since 2018 and a Western region orchestra representative with the North Dakota Music Education Board since 2014. Looking toward the future, she hopes to see significant growth in the string program at WMSCC and strives to support the development of a community initiative, such as a youth orchestra. Her goal is to help it flourish in her community alongside her program.
Outside of work hours, Ms. Westphal enjoys spending time with her husband, reading, cooking, baking, and walking her dog.
Caitlin Nicks
West General Music Rep Candidate
My name is Caitlin Nicks and I am an elementary music teacher in Bismarck, ND. I am in my 11th year teaching for Bismarck Public Schools. I am currently in my 10th year at Rita Murphy and my first year at Lincoln Elementary. Along with my duties as an elementary music teacher, I am also a union representative for the Bismarck Education Association (BEA) and serve on BEA’s board, as community relations chair.
I have also recently joined in serving on the Orff Schulwerk Education Programming Committee for the American Orff Schulwerk Association. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, baking, boating, and being with family and friends. My philosophy is that anyone (adult or student) can be a musician and deserves the opportunity to make music and enjoy music.